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SCRIPTURE:
"The people ate
and were satisfied. Afterward the disciples picked up seven basketfuls
of broken pieces that were left over." (Mark 8:8, NIV)
Observation:
I asked myself what happened after 'the people ate
and were satisfied'?
Afterward the disciples picked up seven
basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over.
Interpretation:
I asked myself the significance of the disciples actions?
When Jesus fed the 4000 men, Jesus wanted to make sure that none of the
food went to waste so Jesus had His disciples collect them. When the
disciples collected the food, seven basketfuls of broken pieces of BREAD
and FISH remained. Wow! Jesus could have produced as much as He wanted
and yet Jesus set a principle of not wasting things.
Implications:
I saw important implications for my own life here. Here Jesus was
showing me the importance of not wasting food at all. Here Jesus was
showing me that even a broken piece of bread or fish should not be left
to waste.
HOW THE GOSPEL GIVES ME A TESTIMONY
REGARDING W.A.S.T.E
In the Gospel, we see that Jesus
was not about wasting anything and Jesus reminds me to eat the food set
before me without wasting the food. Jesus reminds me not to waste my
money or time. Jesus reminds me not to waste my life away. The principle
of not wasting goes beyond just food. Because of that, Jesus has
motivated me to keep a journal to see how I am spending each hour of my
day. More than anything, I was reminded it is a waste of my life without
Jesus Christ in my life. I can gain the whole world and what's the point
if I lose my soul. My entire life will be a waste without Christ leading
the way and I came to know the only thing that should be wasted is sin. Verses pertaining to waste address different categories of
waste.
"For thus
saith the LORD God of Israel, The barrel of meal shall not waste,
neither shall the cruse of oil fail, until the day that the LORD sendeth
rain upon the earth. And she went and did according to the saying of
Elijah: and she, and he, and her house, did eat many days.
And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail,
according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by Elijah." (1 Kings
17:14-16, KJV)
"He also that is
slothful in his work is brother to him that is a great waster."
(Proverbs 18:9, KJV)
"And not many
days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey
into a far country, and there wasted his substance with riotous living."
(Luke 15:13, KJV)
"And he said
also unto his disciples, There was a certain rich man, which had a
steward; and the same was accused unto him that he had wasted his
goods." (Luke 16:1, NIV)
"For ye have
heard of my conversation in time past in the Jews' religion, how that
beyond measure I persecuted the church of God, and wasted it:"
(Galatians 1:13, KJV)
I ask you now dear friend, what
should you W.A.S.T.E in life?
Dear friend, there are so many things in our daily life we should not
waste such as food, our time, our relationships, our money, our mind,
etc. They all need to be used for the Lord's honor and glory. When Jesus
finished feeding the 4000, Jesus did not leave the broken pieces of
bread or fish there but had His disciples collect them because Jesus was
not about waste. Jesus was setting an example and principle so we can
live by it too.
But there is an area of our lives,
we can and should waste everyday. I am talking about sin. Sin is
something we can waste away from our lives. Our lives need not be filled
with sin. But no matter how much we want to waste away sin, we will not
be able to on our own.
You see friend, our heart is
deceitful and we cannot know it. Even when we think we are doing good,
we really are not doing good because we have ulterior motives without
Christ in our lives. Only our focus on Christ should motivate us to do
things. That is the true motivation and will bring lasting results.
You need to waste the things of
your life that are coming between you and the Lord Jesus Christ whatever
it maybe. It is not worth gaining the accolades of this world and losing
our soul and letting it waste away.
"For whoever
wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me
will find it. What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole
world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his
soul? For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father's glory with his
angels, and then he will reward each person according to what he has
done." (Matthew 16:25-27, NIV)
No friend, the only thing that
should be wasted everyday is sin. Sin should be thrown in the dumpster
every day and every afternoon and every night. Yes, friend. But, you and
I need the help of the One who went to the cross, so all our sin can be
dumped upon Him. That's what Jesus did so you and I can waste sin away.
Jesus took all our filth, yuckiness,
shame, etc relieving us of our load. He sanitized us with His precious
cleansing blood so you and I can be new again. We don't have to live in
sin and its bondage. We can be free and it is all because of what Jesus
Christ did for you.
Friend, are
you wasting your life away in sin?
It is not too late whatever you
have done to change around. No, friend it is not.
The enemy will come like a flood
but Jesus wants to cover you in His blood.
When the enemy will strike, remember you Jesus does like.
When the enemy puts you in shame, Jesus wants to give you a new aim
Come to Jesus as you are so Jesus can lead you and guide you His Way
each and every day! For your sin, He came to pay as He on the cross lay.
When you give your life to Christ
and receive His free gift of grace, you will victoriously run life's
race for Jesus will become your Ultimate Ace.
Once you let Jesus handle the sin
areas of your life, all other waste will also come to an end.
Remember, just as we have to
relieve the body of our waste, we need to relieve our soul of the sin
each and every day. When you realize you have succumbed to waste again,
no need to have shame and fear for Christ is here and near to give you a
new aim.
Daily go to the Lord in confession
and repentance knowing He is loving and just, and He will forgive all
your sins and cleanse you from all your unrighteousness
May you know a life lived with the
Lord is never a life that is gone to waste! Amen!
"Wasting A
Soul Torments Eternally!" (W.A.S.T.E)/""What should you W.A.S.T.E in
life?"
Prayer:
Dear Lord Jesus Christ, thank you so much that you did not let the food
go to waste. After feeding the crowds there, you had your disciples pick
up the leftovers and when they picked it up, there were 7 basketfuls of
broken pieces left over. I am thinking it was not only bread but also
fish. Thanks so much Jesus for setting an example for me. Help me not to
waste my time, money, relationships, food, and especially my life living
for you. Help me only to waste sin away. Thank you so much Jesus. Hear
our prayers and answer us Oh Lord. I pray for the one who is struggling
right now. You know what they are going through. Please meet them where
they are at Oh Lord and touch their soul. Thanks so much Jesus! Thank
you for hearing us and answering our prayers. In Your Name I Pray Jesus!
Amen!
May you experience the POWER OF CHRIST'S
RESURRECTION this day, and give Him the LOCKED areas of your life too so
you can experience His PEACE as you become an ACTOR in the film called
LIFE being directed by your DIRECTOR, JESUS CHRIST who comes to give JOY
and PEACE.
You
don't have to be locked away anymore for Christ is here to free you and
give you peace to live out your actions.
How do you look at GODISNOWHERE?
One
of my pastors, Pastor Hugo shared this example this past Sunday at the
RESURRECTION DAY SERVICE in the combined worship service of Pittsburgh
Chinese Church-Oakland & Oakland International Fellowship:
If
you look at it as GOD IS NO WHERE, you will still be lost in your sin
and be in bondage locked away in your sins and problems finding no
peace.
But
as my pastor spoke to the congregation and spoke to me, I am here to
tell you that GOD IS NOW HERE.
Yes,
friend God is alive and wants to bring a transformation in your life
through the Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ for He paid the penalty on
the cross to rescue you and me and came back to life to save us and live
with us.
Yes,
friend that is exciting to know that we can experience HIS SAVING GRACE
& LIVING GRACE.
When
we mess up, we can go to Jesus with our shortcomings and He will forgive
us and restore us to Him and we will find peace in Him.
"Therefore, if
anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has
come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ
and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the
world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he
has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore
Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us.
We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him
who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the
righteousness of God." (Colossians 5:17-21, NIV)
"For the wages
of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our
Lord." (Romans 6:23, NIV)
"But if we walk in the light, as he is in the
light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his
Son, purifies us from all sin. If we claim to be without sin, we deceive
ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is
faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all
unrighteousness." (1 John 1:7-9, NIV)
Friend, we need Jesus because we have been separated from God due to our
sin. Because of our sin, Jesus had to pay the price to become our bridge
so we can reach God now not of our own good works but because of the
finished work of Christ, the Lord on the cross.
"For it is by grace you have been saved,
through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not
by works, so that no one can boast." (Ephesians 2:8-9, NIV)
May
you come to know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Personal Savior becoming
His offspring so you can spend Eternity with Him. He is waiting for you.
Come as you are. Please do not reject the gift of God.
If you would like to
invite Jesus Christ into your heart and make Him a daily part of your
life, you can this very moment. You will never be alone. You can claim
God's promises for you in the Bible and see them come true, before your
eyes, in His wonderful timing. You don't have to wait for a special time
to come to the Lord. You can come right now as you pray this prayer,
meaning it in your heart and finding your new identity in Christ Jesus.
Make this your prayer. Don’t let the enemy deceive you into thinking
you need all the answers before coming to Christ. Let me just assure you
though you may not have all the answers right now before coming to
Jesus, He will answer them slowly. Yes, He will for I know our Redeemer
will! Amen!
Make this your prayer. Don’t let the enemy deceive you into thinking
you need all the answers before coming to Christ. Let me just assure you
though you may not have all the answers right now before coming to
Jesus, He will answer them slowly. Yes, He will for I know our Redeemer
will! Amen!
Prayer:
Jesus, I thank you for being the Bread of Life. You are the Living Bread
of my life. Thank you for coming from Heaven and giving your life for
the life of the world. You sacrificed yourself for humanity. Thank you
Lord when we eat of you symbolically making you part of our life,
digesting what you teach us by following you, we can be living
Eternally, and the fruit that comes will reflect and resemble your life.
I want that Father God. I want that Lord Jesus! I want that Holy Spirit!
I know of a lot of people who partake of Holy Communion where the bread
represents your body broken for their sin and the juice represents your
blood shed for their sin. When we partake of Holy Communion, we are
reminded that we are remembering you. I want to remember you always Lord
Jesus. But for me to remember you always, I need to know you and
acknowledge everything you said you are. So right now I acknowledge that
you are my Lord and Personal Savior who died and rose again to give me
life from sin. So right now, I come to you and say how sorry I am for my
sin and living a life on my own. I repent of my sin and ask you to
forgive me of my sin with your cleansing blood which I accept. Wash me
and I will be clean from this infection of sin. Come Lord Jesus and
please become part of my life as you live in me and I will live for you.
I thank you Jesus for coming into my heart and making my heart your
home. Thank you for living in me Jesus and I will live for you and serve
you the rest of the days of my life. I do need your Spirit to reside in
me and work in me and through me so I surrender all that I am and will
be to you. Whatever your will is for me, please give me the strength and
willingness to bear it and rejoice in you. Thank you so much Jesus. I
thank you Jesus for becoming my Lord and Personal Savior. I thank you
Jesus you have heard my prayer and have answered me. I thank you that I
am your child Oh God. I thank you for becoming my only Way to Eternal
Life. In Your Name I Pray Jesus! Amen!
